AHPRA has announced that medical graduates registering as doctors will be able to defer paying a portion of their fee for up to six months, in recognition of medical students’ limited earning capacity.
When registering as a doctor for the first time, medical students must pay both an application fee of $332 and a registration fee of $543.
These are the fees for provisional registration only; at the end of their internship, junior doctors pay AHPRA a $1661 general registration application fee and a $1102 general registration fee.
The new payment deferral scheme will apply to the registration fee portion, but new doctors will still be on the hook for the application fee up front.
As a pilot scheme, the deferral will only be available for medical students seeking medical registration between 9 October 2026 and 4 January 2027.
Applicants who request the fee deferral will have until 31 March 2027 to pay the full registration fee, regardless of when during the October-to-January period they apply.
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Someone who applies in October, for instance, will have roughly six months to pay, while someone who applies in January will have fewer than three months.
Medical Board of Australia chair Dr Susan O’Dwyer says the regulator has recognised that graduates often register after “a period of limited incoming” while studying and completing clinical placements.
“Many medical students will soon be taking a well-deserved break after years of study and clinical placements, before they start their internship,” says Dr O’Dwyer.
“This trial recognises that graduating students won’t start earning a full-time wage until they start their first job as a doctor.
“We’re deferring part of their regulatory costs until they’re better able to afford them.”
AHPRA CEO Justin Untersteiner says flexible registration payments can potentially be expanded to other professions.
AMA president Dr Danielle McMullen welcomes the announcement, calling it a “common-sense reform”.
“The AMA has consistently supported more equitable and flexible approaches to registration fees and welcomes AHPRA listening to concerns raised by the profession,” she says.
“Practical changes like this can make the transition from medical student to doctor a little less stressful, without affecting regulatory standards or patient safety.”
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